How Disney California Adventure became Pixar World

Like every theme park blogger, I have my own opinions about what went wrong with Disney California Adventure. For the uninitiated, Disney built the park on the cheap and it showed - badly.

I always thought the theme of “Visiting California” never really made any sense to locals or actual tourists visiting California. Why would Disney build a California-themed park in California? That’s a question that may never be satisfactorily answered.

Obviously, hindsight is 20/20. Looking back, it always seemed to me that it would have been better to make DCA the “new” Disney park and let Disneyland be the “old” Disney park. I would have kept the princesses, pirates and pixies at Disneyland and made DCA the Pixar park.

Now that obviously flies in the face of Walt Disney’s famous quote that Disneyland would never be complete “as long as there is imagination left in the world.” But the reality is that’s basically what happened: Disneyland has stayed more or less the same over the past two decades while DCA has gotten all the love and attention.

So I basically imagine my perfect world in “Backstage Disneyland” and redub DCA as Pixar World. Which then necessitates the expulsion of Buzz Lightyear from Disneyland and sets up the rivalry between the two parks which plays out in the book.

If DCA was built today, I’d basically turn it into “brand land.” I’d base the park on Disney’s most popular intellectual properties with individual themed lands dedicated to Marvel, “Star Wars,” “Cars,” “Toy Story,” and “It’s Tough to be a Bug.”

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Sample chapters
Prologue: Once Upon a Time
Chapter 1: Wonderful World of Disney
Chapter 2: A Whole New World
Chapter 3: Exile on Main Street USA
Chapter 4: Evil Plans
Chapter 5: Real Princesses of Disneyland
Chapter 6: Action Figure
Chapter 7: Code R
Chapter 8: Common Foes
Chapter 9: Peace, Love & Mickey
Chapter 10: Operation Death Star

Chapter 11: Frozen Ever After

Chapter 3 of Backstage Disneyland, a new novella by Brady MacDonald

3

Exile on Main Street USA

The King of Spades snaps custom-made handcuffs on Buzz Lightyear as all the other Disney characters in Club 33 pause to watch. Everyone in the pin-drop quiet private club-turned-beer hall stares at the condemned space ranger, shoulders slumped and spirit shattered.

"Buzz Lightyear," bellows the King of Spades. "By order of the Queen of Hearts, I hearby banish you to Pixar World for the night."

Accepting of his nightly fate, Buzz bows his head as two playing card guards grab him roughly by the elbows in a saber-rattling show of force.

Roger Rabbit leaps up on the table and grabs Buzz by the shoulders, trying to shake some backbone into the submissive spaceman.

"You don't have to take this," Roger says, slapping the spineless spaceman across the face. "You're Buzz Lightyear of Star Command."

Indiana Jones tries to restrain Roger, who continues slapping Buzz. You’d think by now Roger would realize there’s nothing that can be done. But the rabbit never learns.

"Snap out of it, man," Roger screams.

Indy lifts the flailing bunny off the table and throws him on the floor in a heap at Mickey Mouse's feet.

"We go through this every night, Roger," an exasperated Indy says. "They come to arrest Buzz, you slap him silly and nothing changes."

Roger hops up on a chair and points an accusatory finger in the face of a cigar-chomping Mickey.

"You could do something about this if you wanted to," says Roger, nose to nose with Mickey.

Mickey blows a cloud of smoke in Roger's face, sending the choking bunny tumbling backward onto a table full of drinks. The commotion stirs Buzz from his sedentary state of acceptance.

"Yeah, Mickey," says Buzz, equal parts wounded and weary. "You could put an end to this."

Sensing trouble, the teeter-tottering guards surround Buzz and Emperor Zurg with spears at the ready.

"Chill, dude," Zurg whispers to Buzz in his robotic electronic voice.

Gnawing on his cigar, Mickey tries to balance a show of power with a display of compassion. Indy wouldn’t want to be in his big yellow shoes - making an endless stream of guests happy all day and keeping a ragtag bunch of characters in line every night.

"Trust me, Buzz," Mickey says. "This goes higher than me or the Queen of Hearts."

The King of Spades shoves Mickey in the chest with the shaft of his spear.

"Watch your tongue mouse," the King sputters.


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Sample chapters
Prologue: Once Upon a Time
Chapter 1: Wonderful World of Disney
Chapter 2: A Whole New World
Chapter 3: Exile on Main Street USA
Chapter 4: Evil Plans
Chapter 5: Real Princesses of Disneyland
Chapter 6: Action Figure
Chapter 7: Code R
Chapter 8: Common Foes
Chapter 9: Peace, Love & Mickey
Chapter 10: Operation Death Star
Chapter 11: Frozen Ever After

Up Next: Chapter 3 of Backstage Disneyland, a new novella

Last week, I published a sample from the second chapter to my new novella, Backstage Disneyland. The story poses the question: What if Disney characters are real and they live behind the scenes at Disneyland?

On Monday, I will publish a portion of the third chapter called Exile on Main Street USA. In this chapter, the playing playing guards from Alice in Wonderland exile a shackled Buzz Lightyear to Pixar World (aka Disney California Adventure). Can our hero Indiana Jones free his best friend?

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Sample chapters
Prologue: Once Upon a Time
Chapter 1: Wonderful World of Disney
Chapter 2: A Whole New World
Chapter 3: Exile on Main Street USA
Chapter 4: Evil Plans
Chapter 5: Real Princesses of Disneyland
Chapter 6: Action Figure
Chapter 7: Code R
Chapter 8: Common Foes
Chapter 9: Peace, Love & Mickey
Chapter 10: Operation Death Star
Chapter 11: Frozen Ever After

Framing the action before introducing the dialogue

Dialogue has always been one of my strengths as a writer - sometimes to my detriment.

The last book I started about a high school girl that goes from least to most popular was virtually all dialogue before I dropped the story. It was nothing but talking heads moving from one contrived location to another.

I’m pretty happy with the dialogue in “Backstreet Disneyland” because I set out to frame the action before I ever thought about what the characters would say - trusting that my dialogue strengths would shine through when I needed them later.

That approach allowed me to figure out a voice for each character before grafting dialogue onto their nascent personality. It also forced me to focus on the action - one of my storytelling weaknesses.

With the dialogue introduced later in the writing process I was able to have my characters express themselves in concise yet conversational ways. I constantly found myself editing down the dialogue to the bare minimum - cutting away exposition that was better handled by the narrator and letting my characters speak in shorter bursts like real people do.

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Sample chapters
Prologue: Once Upon a Time
Chapter 1: Wonderful World of Disney
Chapter 2: A Whole New World
Chapter 3: Exile on Main Street USA
Chapter 4: Evil Plans
Chapter 5: Real Princesses of Disneyland
Chapter 6: Action Figure
Chapter 7: Code R
Chapter 8: Common Foes
Chapter 9: Peace, Love & Mickey
Chapter 10: Operation Death Star
Chapter 11: Frozen Ever After

Getting to know the real Darth Vader

It always seemed to me that after a long day of destroying the universe that Darth Vader would want to kick back and chill with his friends over a drink (although he obviously can’t imbibe).

I always envisioned a “Backstage Disneyland” version of Darth as laid back, mellow and overly apologetic when his temper flared. I took my cue for Backstage Darth from the Star Wars Dance Party at Florida’s Disney Hollywood Studios - where the sith lord gets his groove on and lets his hair down.

Of course, Darth can’t be all good backstage. Like the rest of us, he can be petty and selfish about seemingly inconsequential issues - like the Star Wars Festival at the center of “Backstage Disneyland.” Just like in real life, the smallest of decisions can have larger unintended consequences.

I had a fun throughout the book with a running gag about Darth’s ever-changing facial expressions - inspired by the Expressions of Vader t-shirt.

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Sample chapters
Prologue: Once Upon a Time
Chapter 1: Wonderful World of Disney
Chapter 2: A Whole New World
Chapter 3: Exile on Main Street USA
Chapter 4: Evil Plans
Chapter 5: Real Princesses of Disneyland
Chapter 6: Action Figure
Chapter 7: Code R
Chapter 8: Common Foes
Chapter 9: Peace, Love & Mickey
Chapter 10: Operation Death Star
Chapter 11: Frozen Ever After

The hidden side of characters you’ve known all your life

I’ve had to balance my familiarity with the Disney and Pixar characters with the presumption that most readers know them as well or better than I do. At the same time, I have to keep in mind that a non-Disney fan might pick up “Backstage Disneyland” and expect to be just as grounded in the characters.

I tried to add just enough description of the characters to make them instantly recognizable without getting into great detail about their personality. In describing the characters, I tried to emphasize the differences (and sometimes similarities) of their backstage personalities to their on-stage personas.

I purposely divided the characters into high school-like cliques - animals, villains, heroes, sidekicks - so that they would be forced to mingle and stray from their familiar stories.

Although it’s never explicitly stated in “Backstage Disneyland,” I imagined that each of the characters lived at their attractions in Disneyland in a behind-the-scenes apartment themed to their story.

My favorite characters in “Backstage Disneyland” are the playing card guards from “Alice in Wonderland.” Much like the Green Army Men, I loved having to figure out how the card guards would walk, talk, navigate stairs and even get on elevators.

Leota the spirit medium was probably the most crucial character to work into the Club 33 scene - as will become evident later. It was hard to come up with something for a floating head to do. I finally decided she could play poker with the villains - and take all their money.

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Sample chapters
Prologue: Once Upon a Time
Chapter 1: Wonderful World of Disney
Chapter 2: A Whole New World
Chapter 3: Exile on Main Street USA
Chapter 4: Evil Plans
Chapter 5: Real Princesses of Disneyland
Chapter 6: Action Figure
Chapter 7: Code R
Chapter 8: Common Foes
Chapter 9: Peace, Love & Mickey
Chapter 10: Operation Death Star
Chapter 11: Frozen Ever After

Taking readers inside the secret Club 33

It made sense to me that the Disney characters would hang out in Club 33 after the park closed for the day. It’s beautiful, hidden and exclusive. And serves alcohol. Why not party at the most coveted address in Disneyland? Especially if there’s an open bar.

I took some liberties with the interior design, essentially setting the action of “Backstage Disneyland” in an enlarged version of the famed Trophy Room. The real Trophy Room would never have enough space for all the Disney characters I crammed in there. But with a little Hollywood magic, I made the Club 33 Trophy Room about four times as big as it really is.

I’ve been fortunate to visit Club 33 twice in my life. The first time it was during a formal sit-down dinner with white linens, china, silverware and a full menu. The second visit was during a large event, so the food was served buffet style.

I love that devotees are so fanatical about Club 33 that they post photos of the bathroom toilets online. That’s a serious obsession.

I still haven’t been to Club 33 since the most recent remodel. Unless somebody wants to invite me for a visit. I’d be happy to buy lunch.

Buy the book

Read the blog

Sample chapters
Prologue: Once Upon a Time
Chapter 1: Wonderful World of Disney
Chapter 2: A Whole New World
Chapter 3: Exile on Main Street USA
Chapter 4: Evil Plans
Chapter 5: Real Princesses of Disneyland
Chapter 6: Action Figure
Chapter 7: Code R
Chapter 8: Common Foes
Chapter 9: Peace, Love & Mickey
Chapter 10: Operation Death Star
Chapter 11: Frozen Ever After